When the news broke this week that Michael Fassbender and David Hasselhoff were cast in a feature-length version of director David Sandberg's viral action-comedy short "Kung Fury,” well, suffice to say, we were quite frankly confused. Fassbender isn’t exactly known for comedies but that’s all about to change with this film which, following the plot of Sandberg’s original short, would have a Miami Cop with super Kung Fu powers time travelling to fight Kung Führer AKA Hitler. The short was produced on an incredibly successful Kickstarter campaign amassing close to $630,000. The half hour movie ended up garnering close to 40 million views online and was actually part of Cannes' prestigious Director's Fortnight. Since then Sandberg broke through as a good horror director with "Lights Out" and last year's hit "Annabelle: Creation."
Of course, if you're going to make an absurd comedy that pays tribute to ’80s action films then you might as well stack up the cast with a nice dose of nostalgia. Cue in Arnold Schwarzenegger, who has joined the cast of "Kung Fury." THR is reporting that the "Governator" is going to play the American president in Sandberg's movie which is set to shoot this summer.
THR has the synopsis going like this:
"The action is set in 1985 Miami, which is kept safe under the watchful eye of Kung Fury and his Thundercops, the ultimate police force assembled from across history to defeat the villainous Kung Fuhrer, Adolf Hitler. After the tragic death of a Thundercop sees the group disband, a mysterious villain emerges from the shadows to aid in the Fuhrer's quest to attain the ultimate weapon. Kung Fury must travel through space and time to save his friends, defend the prestigious Miami Kung Fu Academy and defeat evil once and for all."
Sandberg will also star as the titular hero, deemed the "greatest damn cop of all time" and something tells me more '80s action stars will be cast in the film. As for Schwarzenegger, the 70-year-old actor has had a rough time finding a groove ever since coming out of acting retirement in 2013 with "Escape Plan," his films since then ("The Last Stand," "Sabotage," "Maggie," "Killing Gunther," "Aftermath"), although different and having shown a range in the actor we've never seen before, have failed to ignite any kind of excitement at the box-office or with his fans. However, with "Kung Fury" and Tim Miller's as of yet untitled "Terminator" reboot starring Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, and written by James Cameron, things might change for Arnold, who isn't getting any younger and has us desperately in need of another great movie from him.
The original “Kung Fury” short can be seen below.